A student’s home church can do more than encourage the decision to attend Bible college. Through Calvary Chapel Bible College’s Church Match Scholarship, a church can contribute directly toward a student’s tuition and CCBC will match that contribution.
The scholarship is built around a simple conviction: biblical formation is a shared work between the student, the local church, and the college.
When churches participate, students pay less, churches remain connected to those they send, and CCBC joins them in preparing believers to serve Christ and His church.
In Fall 2026, 16 churches committed $13,266 toward the tuition of 16 CCBC students. With CCBC’s dollar-for-dollar match, those partnerships generated $26,532 in combined committed tuition assistance.
How Does the Church Match Scholarship Work?
Through the Church Match Scholarship, CCBC matches a student’s home-church contribution toward tuition, up to one-third of the student’s semester tuition.
The basic structure is:
- The church contributes up to one-third of tuition.
- CCBC matches the church’s contribution, up to one-third.
- The student pays the remaining balance.
Current tuition is $300 per credit. A home church may contribute up to $100 per credit, and CCBC will match that contribution up to an additional $100 per credit.
The church does not have to provide the maximum amount. CCBC will match whatever qualifying amount the church contributes, up to the scholarship limit.
What Could the Scholarship Save a Student?
| Church contribution | CCBC match | Total tuition assistance | Student’s remaining tuition |
| $1,500 | $1,500 | $3,000 | $1,500 |
| $1,000 | $1,000 | $2,000 | $2,500 |
| $500 | $500 | $1,000 | $3,500 |
At the maximum match, a church contribution of $1,500 unlocks another $1,500 from CCBC. Together, the church contribution and CCBC match reduce the student’s semester tuition by $3,000.
The scholarship also works for students taking fewer credits. For example, if a student takes six credits:
- The church may contribute up to $600.
- CCBC may match up to $600.
- The student may receive up to $1,200 in combined tuition assistance.
- The student pays the remaining tuition.
Every qualifying dollar contributed by the church is matched by CCBC, up to one-third of tuition.
Sixteen Churches Are Partnering with CCBC This Fall
In Fall 2026, 16 local churches partnered with CCBC through the Church Match Scholarship to support 16 students; eight studying on campus and eight studying online.
Together, those churches committed $13,266 toward student tuition. Because CCBC matches qualifying church contributions dollar for dollar, those commitments generated another $13,266 in scholarship support. The resulting combined committed tuition assistance totaled $26,532.
| Meausre | Fall 2025 | Fall 2026 |
| Participating Churches | 5 | 16 |
| Students Supported | 5 | 16 |
| Church contributions committed | $5,733 | $13,266 |
| CCBC matching funds committed | $5,733 | $13,266 |
| Combined tuition assistance committed | $11,466 | $26,532 |
From Fall 2025 to Fall 2026, the number of participating churches more than tripled. Church commitments increased by $7,533, and the combined tuition assistance created through the partnership increased by $15,066.
Those numbers matter because they represent more than financial aid. Sixteen churches made a tangible investment in the biblical formation of students from their congregations.
Participating churches included Calvary Chapel congregations and churches from other Christian traditions. Some supported students studying in Bradenton, while others partnered with students completing their education online while remaining rooted in their home churches and communities.
This is the vision behind the Church Match Scholarship: students do not pursue biblical formation alone. Their churches help send and support them, and CCBC joins those churches by matching their investment.
Why Should a Church Help Send a Student to Bible College?
Financial assistance is significant, but church partnership is about more than lowering tuition.
A local church may already recognize a student’s character, gifts, faithfulness, and desire to grow. Church leaders have often watched the student serve, respond to correction, develop relationships, and take steps of faith.
That gives the church a meaningful role in discerning and supporting the student’s next season.
When a church contributes toward Bible college, it communicates:
We see God at work in you. We believe this season of biblical study can be fruitful. We want to participate in helping you grow.
That support can strengthen the relationship among the student, church, and college throughout the student’s education.
Bible College Exists to Serve the Local Church
Bible college should not replace the local church.
The local church is where believers worship, receive pastoral care, build relationships, practice their gifts, serve others, and participate in the life of the body of Christ. Bible college provides a focused season of study and formation intended to strengthen that lifelong participation.
At CCBC, the Bible is our primary textbook. Students learn to read Scripture carefully, think biblically, and apply God’s Word to life and ministry.
Some graduates become pastors, missionaries, or ministry leaders. Others carry their biblical education into business, education, the trades, family life, and other vocations while continuing to serve in their local churches.
This is what CCBC means by providing a biblical foundation for every calling.
When a church helps send a student, it is investing not only in that individual but also in the future health and service of the body of Christ.
How Can a Church Fund Its Contribution?
- A designated amount from the church budget
- A missions or leadership-development fund
- A scholarship or education fund
- A special offering
- A single Sunday love offering
- Designated gifts collected for an eligible student
Who Can Apply for the Church Match Scholarship?
- On-campus students
- Online students
- Full-time students
- Part-time students
How Does a Student Apply?
To request this semesterly scholarship, a student must submit the Church Match Scholarship form signed by the participating church before regular registration closes for the applicable semester.
After the request is approved:
- The church receives a secure payment link.
- The church submits its contribution directly to CCBC.
- CCBC applies the matching scholarship after the church’s contribution is received.
- The student is responsible for the remaining tuition balance.
Students should begin the conversation with their church early enough to allow time for leadership consideration, form completion, approval, and payment.
The current form, deadlines, examples, and application instructions are available on the Church Match Scholarship page.
How Should a Student Approach Their Church?
- Why they want to attend Bible college
- What they hope to study
- How the program relates to their spiritual growth and calling
- How they currently participate in the church
- What the total tuition will be
- How the Church Match Scholarship works
- How much they are asking the church to consider
- What portion of the cost they plan to pay
- How they hope to remain connected to and serve the church while studying
What Role Can a Church Play Beyond Financial Support?
- Praying regularly for the student
- Providing pastoral counsel
- Helping the student discern course load and timing
- Offering opportunities to serve
- Asking what the student is learning
- Providing accountability and encouragement
- Maintaining contact with students attending on campus
- Helping online students connect coursework to local ministry
- Celebrating academic and spiritual milestones
- Welcoming graduates back into fruitful service
Frequently Asked Questions About the Church Match Scholarship
Does a church have to contribute the full one-third?
No. CCBC will match the qualifying amount a church is able to contribute, up to one-third of the student’s tuition.
Does the church have to be a Calvary Chapel?
No. The Church Match Scholarship is available when an eligible student’s home church agrees to participate and completes the required process.
Can online and part-time students receive the scholarship?
Yes. The Church Match Scholarship is available to eligible campus, online, full-time, and part-time students. The match is calculated per credit.
Can a church take a special offering?
Yes. A church may use a special or single-Sunday love offering to fund its contribution. The resulting contribution must be submitted directly by the church.
Can an individual donate the money through the church?
Churches should follow CCBC’s current scholarship instructions when collecting and submitting funds. The qualifying contribution must come directly from the participating church through the approved payment process.
What is the application deadline?
The completed form, including the church’s signature, must be submitted before regular registration closes for the semester the student plans to attend.
How many terms/semesters does the Church Match Scholarship cover?
The Church Match Scholarship can be applied for at the beginning of each semester and it will cover one semester. If students which to make use of the scholarship the next semester they will need to complete a new form.
Each online semester is split into two terms (Term A & Term B). Online students who wish to use the scholarship for both terms will need to register for both terms during the regular registration of Term A and complete the Church Match Scholarship form before the end of Term A’s regular registraiton period. The scholarship does not open for the Term B registration period.
Is previous needs-based aid still available?
No. The Church Match Scholarship replaced CCBC’s previous needs-based aid program.
When is CCBC’s match applied?
CCBC applies its matching amount after the participating church’s contribution has been received.
Interested in the Church Match Scholarship?
